


Jello Shots And Lemon Drops

by rosewitchx



Series: home's the place that I've never known [1]
Category: Steven Universe (Cartoon)
Genre: Corruption, Drabble, F/M, Homeworld is Horrible, Implied/Referenced Torture, Spoilers for Episode: s05e01-04 Wanted, Tags May Change, leave steven alone :C, mentions of lars, tagging is heck, they talk thru dreams i dunno what's the name of that
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-07-31
Updated: 2017-08-08
Packaged: 2018-12-09 03:55:10
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 12
Words: 1,200
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11661108
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/rosewitchx/pseuds/rosewitchx
Summary: The Dream Warrior talks to Connie through the void of space.





	1. otter pop

Connie sees the Dream Warrior in her dreams and the first thing she tries to do is pinch herself awake.

She’s been...thinking, of this moment, quite a lot. When Kiki told her she had seen him once through her dreams, Connie didn’t want to give herself any hopes. She knew it was  _ possible _ , sure, Steven’s powers were basically unpredictable by this point, but —

She didn’t want to wait forever for someone who might not come.

So when she wakes up  — she rubs her face and calls herself an idiot.

Because the Dream Warrior had appeared, and she’d fled again.


	2. uncool lunch table

Connie goes back to sleep, and finds Steven still there. He doesn’t say anything, at first, and neither does she; for a while, all they do is stare at each other like idiots.

And then Steven chuckles, breaks away from her, and sighs. “Hey,” he says. 

He sounds so  _ exhausted _ , Connie notes. There’s bags under his eyes and his body curves forward slightly, like carrying an invisible weight a kid his age should not have to, and suddenly she wants to grab him by the shoulders and pull him back home somehow, away from Homeworld’s grasp.

“Hey,” Connie replies instead.


	3. marble soda

The first thing he says is sorry. He says, “I had no choice.”

Connie purses her lips and answers with a bitter “duh, yes you had.”

Steven chuckles and looks into the distance. “Yeah, guess I had.”

“How’s Lars? How are  _ you _ ?” He clutches his shirt, looking shaken for a moment, before answering.

“They took Lars,” he says. “I’m just— waiting for something to happen.” Silence. He stares into the very fake sky of Connie’s dreamscape and sighs. “How long has it been already?”

“Two days,” Connie says. She looks at Steven for a moment... “Feels like a thousand years.”


	4. hotto dogu

Connie's dreams the next night are invaded again by the Dream Warrior.

He tells her he's scared, for once; he's glad at least it'll be over soon. He hopes he can negotiate Lars' fate with someone, anyone, but he's not too high on hopes.

He's still in the white room. Nothing has changed. He's so thirsty, and hungry, and tired—

"But I thought you were sleeping too?"

"I don't rest when I'm talking to you."

"What? You need to. At least a little, you need to have energy in case something happens."

"Connie," he says then, "what if nothing does?"


	5. half & half

Nothing happens. For a while, at least. The next night Steven's there, despite her worries; he moves sluggishly and barely speaks.

"Maybe this is the punishment," he says, after a long silence. "Maybe— they'll starve me to death."

"Steven," she starts, but stops herself when he holds her tightly and sobs into her shoulder.

"I'm going to die alone," he cries, and Connie remembers, bitterly: they had been under the sea, inside a pink bubble, when this had first happened. "Lars too— and I can't do anything about it—"

Connie says nothing and holds him closer.

"It's just a thought."


	6. mac n' cheese

The Dream Warrior has gone missing.

It's only one night, but she worries. She knows he'll live, Garnet senses it, but she's worried sick anyway. Him being missing means he's not in the white room anymore. Means he's not alone.

Connie tells the Gems. Of course she does; it breaks Pearl into a sobbing mess, makes Greg lose himself even more. But it makes Amethyst's eyes shine with hope, gives Peridot a newfound drive. Even Lapis seems more motivated than ever.

Connie goes to sleep again. It's the sixth day.

The Dream Warrior has gone missing, and Connie's worried sick.


	7. pizza rolls

Steven returns to her dreams on the seventh night. He can barely hold himself steady. His eyes are too dark— Connie can't shake off the feeling that something terrible has happened.

He tells her there had been a trial. He told them he was guilty (Connie can't say she didn't expect it from him, but still wishes he hadn't had to), and they punished him for it.

"What did they do?," she asks him when he falls silent. He still won't reply. "Steven, what did they do," she repeats, looking at him.

"We're running," he says instead. "Lars and I."


	8. hot milk

Steven insists, on the eighth day: he's alright!

They met some new gems, he says. They're called Rutile, and they're twins. They're taking them to a safer place.

"Are you sure you're okay?," Connie asks, nevertheless, because he's her best friend and she's terrified of whatever horrors hide in Homeworld. But he tells her it's okay. He'll be okay.

Connie tells him: the Gems are fixing an old spaceship — Steven smiles softly, of course they are. She can't do much but watch, though it still feels better than staying at home, doing nothing.

The ninth day, Steven is gone again.


	9. ramune

When they warp back home, Connie's trying to keep back her tears.

She knows crying won't help. But she also knows: it's been ten days. Steven's still human, same as Lars. And the dropship doesn't look any better than before.

Greg refuses to look at Pearl. Pearl's rambling, exhausted; Amethyst's trying not to punch her. Garnet's smiling, but tells no one why.

When they arrive at the Temple, Connie sees him.

 _Steven_.

He stands next to Lion, so obviously tired and beaten down, but manages a grin when everyone sees him.

"I'm home!," he cries, and collapses in Greg's arms.


	10. cappuccino

Steven wakes up again, trying to push himself up from the floor. Everyone's surrounding him; who knows if he'll vanish again the second they stop looking.

Greg pulls him into his embrace again, suppressing a sob. Steven's clearly deteriorated,  _changed_ even, so different from the boy that lived there ten days ago.

Connie doesn't press it. Steven gives her a grateful smile.

Later, when the grownups have calmed down, and only Pearl pretends not to watch, they go to the beach. They sit under the stars, and Connie hears him sob.

"Steven?"

"Lars died," he says. "And he's still alive."


	11. grape soda

Steven's explained it. What happened.

They spend a while quiet after that, listening to the waves crashing against the beach. Connie leans against his shoulder, and closes her eyes.

"We need to get Lars back," he says.

"I know."

"They're not coming here, Connie."

"You don't know that."

"I do." Steven moves underneath her, glancing at her. "At least they won't come  _for_ me."

"Because they think you're still there, right?"

Steven clutches his shirt, by his Gem, but Connie pretends she doesn't notice. "Right."

"We still have to prepare, just in case. We— we can't let that happen again."


	12. bubble tea

Garnet tells her Peridot's theory the next day and she's suddenly _very_ upset.

She confronts Steven about it. She knows, deep down, it's too soon for that — he's just returned, he's exhausted. But she needs to know.

"Did the Diamonds— corrupt you?"

Steven falls silent. His face is an unreadable mask; an eternity passes by before he manages to reply.

"No," he says, and it feels too much like a lie.

Connie spars with Steven.

Her revenge is sweet, though short-lived. She kicks his ass in combat, and then he faints.

Connie wishes the Dream Warrior hadn't stolen Steven away.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> aaaaaand that's a wrap.


End file.
